Founded in 2020 in Brussels by Nicolas Bourthoumieux and Julien Dumond, the duo Noir Métal develops a practice at the intersection of sculpture, design, and scenography. Initially rooted in metalworking—applied in service of other artists for the production of plinths, frames, or structures—their work has gradually evolved toward autonomous forms, nourished by the residues and materials resulting from these commissions.
Based in the Atelier des Brasseries Atlas in Brussels, Noir Métal creates hybrid dispositifs that are both functional and sculptural, questioning the status of the object and its capacity to activate space. The duo is regularly invited to develop exhibition scenographies, while continuing a formal research marked by processes of assembly, transformation, and reuse.
Their work has been presented in various independent and institutional contexts, notably in Brussels (Plagiarama, La Verrière – Fondation d’entreprise Hermès), as well as in galleries in France. Through an economy of means and a focus on invisible structures, Noir Métal constructs a language in which furniture, architecture, and sculpture converge, revealing the material and perceptual conditions of exhibition-making.